Covid No Longer Among Top 5 Causes Of Death In The US
News that the virus is causing fewer deaths — it has slipped to 10th from fourth place — comes amid a summer surge that has Chicago health officials warning attendees of the music festival Lollapalooza to get checked out. Also, as measles cases spike, officials urge parents to vaccinate their kids.
CIDRAP:
COVID Drops To 10th Leading Cause Of Death In US
Provisional data from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) on the top causes of deaths in the United States in 2023 shows COVID-19 dropped to the tenth leading cause of death. In 2022, it was the fourth leading cause of death, meaning deaths from COVID dropped by 68.9% in 1 year. There were 76,446 deaths from COVID-19 in 2021, and 245,614 in 2022. In 2023, the leading causes of death in the United States were heart disease (680,909 deaths), cancer (613,331), and unintentional injury (222,518). (Soucheray, 8/8)
CBS News:
Concerns Rise About COVID Cases Associated With Lollapalooza
Health officials are preparing for a spike in COVID-19 cases in the wake of Lollapalooza this past weekend. Lollapalooza once again brought more than 100,000 music lovers to Grant Park each day of the four-day festival. Along with a good time, some appear also to be leaving with positive COVID-19 tests—and posts shared online have urged other attendees of both the festival itself and afterparties to get checked out. (De Mar, 8/8)
On measles and the benefits of childhood vaccinations —
CBS News:
Measles Cases Are Triple What They Were Last Year In The U.S. Doctors Say Vaccines Can Help
Federal health officials are renewing warnings about the growing number of measles cases and encouraging parents to get their children the recommended vaccinations before school starts. Measles outbreaks are up substantially, CDC numbers show. CDC officials say that's because there was a drop in vaccinations, which they say are the best way to keep communities safe and free from potentially deadly diseases. (Stahl and Nau, 8/8)
CNN:
Childhood Vaccinations Will Have Prevented More Than 500 Million Illnesses And 1 Million Deaths In US Since 1994, CDC Report Says
Routine childhood vaccinations will have prevented hundreds of millions of illnesses, tens of millions of hospitalizations and more than 1 million deaths among people born between 1994 and 2023, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. A new report, published Thursday by the CDC, analyzed the benefits of routine childhood immunizations in the United States through the CDC’s Vaccines for Children Program, which launched in 1994. The research also found that the vaccinations saved the country billions of dollars. (Howard, 8/8)
On bird flu, Valley fever, listeria, and MRSA —
CIDRAP:
Clinicians Detail H5N1 Infections In 2 Michigan Farm Workers
A group led by Michigan clinicians yesterday described two H5N1 avian flu infections in dairy workers who were sick in May, one with conjunctivitis and the other with more systemic flulike symptoms. They detailed their findings in a letter to the New England Journal of Medicine. The workers were employed at two separate farms. The first patient began having right-eye symptoms 1 day after milk had splashed in their eye while milking a cow. ... Meanwhile, the worker from the second farm had cared for sick cows, including administering oral fluid therapy, which typically involves contact with the animal's oral secretions. The worker used eye protection and gloves, but not a respirator or a mask. (Schnirring, 8/8)
NBC News:
Valley Fever Outbreak At California Music Festival Shows Fungus' Threat
An outbreak of Valley fever among attendees and workers at an outdoor music festival in California’s Central Valley highlights the fungal infection’s mounting threat. Fourteen people who traveled to attend or work at the Lightning in a Bottle Festival in Bakersfield in May have tested positive for Valley fever and developed symptoms, the California Department of Public Health told NBC News on Thursday. At least three of them were hospitalized. (Bendix and Barakett, 8/8)
NPR:
3rd Person Dies In Listeria Outbreak Tied To Boar's Head Products
There has been a third death connected to the listeria outbreak among Boar’s Head deli meats, the CDC said Thursday. A person most recently died in Virginia, adding to the two previous deaths reported in New Jersey and Illinois. In addition, 43 people have been hospitalized across 13 states, including Missouri, Minnesota, Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Georgia, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts. (Archie, 8/9)
CIDRAP:
Hospitalization Linked To Higher Risk Of MRSA Infections In Households
A new study suggests that people who've recently been hospitalized could potentially be a major source of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) transmission in households. (Dall, 8/8)
